Apple may be working on a smaller “iPad mini” tablet with a 7.85-inch display, according to a new report from United Daily News in Taiwan. Reportedly, LG Display and AU Optronics will supply the parts for the device, which will have the same 1024 x 768-pixel resolution as the iPad 2. Apple may want to enter the lower-priced tablet market in an effort to steal market share away from Amazon’s Kindle Fire device, but at least one analyst has argued the device may not be smaller in size than the current iPad. Ticonderoga Securities analyst Brian White recently suggested that Apple might introduce an “iPad mini” priced in the “high to mid-$200 range” during the first few months of 2012, and the device will feature the same 9-inch display despite its smaller price tag. Apple is then expected to release an iPad 3 with a higher 2048 x 736 resolution later in the year. More →

Apple has reportedly placed a new order for 30 million display panels per year from leading display manufacturer AU Optronic. The unconfirmed report from Taiwan Economic News suggests Apple paid a huge 300-400% premium to lock in the order, which could see AU Optronics produce up to 100,000 iPad 2 displays each day. The order accounts for about half of the global tablet market, the report claims. Apple had sourced its 9.7-inch iPad 2 displays from LGD and Samsung and some manufacturing took place in Japan, which could be part of the reason for Apple’s willingness to pay a premium to a new supplier. It is also unclear if the move is a response to light leakage problems many have reported with Apple’s current iPad 2 displays. More →

In the future, the cost of your next smartphone might decrease by a few pennies thanks to a new lawsuit brought on by Nokia against some of the world’s largest LCD manufactures. Filed simultaneously in both the United States and the England on November 25th, Nokia is alleging that AU Optronics, Hitachi, LG, Philips, Samsung, Seiko Epson, Sharp, Toshiba and others willingly conspired to “artificially inflated the price of liquid crystal displays ultimately incorporated into LCD products purchased by Nokia, causing Nokia to pay higher prices.” Earlier this year, AT&T started a similar lawsuit after LG, Chunghwa Picture Tubes and Sharp pled guilty to price fixing which eventually caused Hitatchi to come clean. Of course with Nokia’s financial situation being what it is, any savings brought on by a successful lawsuit could just as easily — and most likely — be contributed towards the companies profit margins. So far Nokia has yet to go on the record regarding the remedies it is seeking, but we imagine the information will become clear soon enough. More →